Financial Council
Deep in the catacombs of Tombstone Averon Birg sits in his spacious office. His desk is littered with scrolls of various sizes and surrounding him are numerous vid-screens all displaying financial data from around the sector. Servitors shuffle around the edges of the room managing the tremendous amounts of paperwork and cleaning the ashtrays and empty recaf cups from the few times Averon moves around the room to smoke a cigar or drink while checking other vid-screens. Fully engrossed in his work Averon fails to hear one of his adepts step into his office. “Lord High Financer Averon Birg, I’ve found it!” The adept exclaims. “Funding to sustain the chapter’s coffers for the next century or more!” Averon turns to face his adept and has to push one of the servo-skulls holding a vid-screen out of the way. Before him stands a bent over old man with liver spotted skin sagging from his face and bald head. The man’s right eye is glass with an Aquilla where his iris should be. Surrounding the adept are several servitors holding papers and two servo-skulls hover around the entire group in alternating circuits. “Well Fiscus, speak quickly. Even as we speak sector markets are fluctuating and I have to protect what little amount of funding we currently have.” “My Lord, you know of the Mining Board on Nova Premium, what is it that they have and we don’t?” “Aside from massive coffers full of thrones and a planets worth of adamantine mines Fiscus? Well, I guess they’ve got an addiction to pure white shirts. I had a meeting with them several years back and the amount of white in their offices was almost blinding!” “Yes, sir. All of those things. But there is one more thing they have that we can use! The Potemkin Consortium!” “Fiscus, do you imply we make financial plans with the Potemkin? Half the sector nobles know they are a fading house and will be dead or bought out by the other Consortium within the next few years.” “That is just it my Lord, they are in a position to deal with us in order to keep their standings!” “I think I know where you are going here, but continue.” “One more question Lord Birg, what do we have on Mormark and Varda?” “Fiscus, get to your point! We have mines on Mormark, gases on Varda, and a small gold mine on Varda that we have not confirmed how deep or sustainable it may be.” Averon’s patients grow thin and his eyes begin to drift back towards his numerous vid-screens. “I propose we send an envoy to the Potemkin Consotrium to negotiate a trade deal. They provide us with minerals and transport the minerals to Iron Phoenix in the skies above Mormark. We also ship gases and gold from Varda to Iron Phoenix. And-“ “FISCUS!” Averon yells at the older man causing him to jump. “Is this some silly trade deal to provide funding through Iron Phoenix? If it is get out of my office, you’ve wasted enough time!” Fiscus spends a brief moment to calm his old heart before continuing. “No my Lord, this is much bigger. Our chapter is in need of too many things for a simple trade agreement that brings materials through Iron Phoenix. I am suggesting using all of the materials to lower the cost of building ships!” At the words ‘building ships’ Averon’s full attention returns to his adept. “How do you suggest we do this Fiscus?” “As we both know, to make money one must first spend it. I purpose we build a shipyard above Mormark. It should cost 100 million thrones. We then send an emissary to Potemkin Consortium stating our intentions to deal with them if they supply materials and transports. We in turn supply them with new escort class cargo haulers every few years, or frigate class cargo haulers on a longer time line. With the use of our own materials that we refine and build into ships in our own shipyards I believe we can lower the cost per ship by nearly 50%. We then produce ships in rounds of threes. One ship will be a trade vessel to help Potemkin regain a foothold in their economy with the influx of trade. Another ship will go to the chapters fleet. The last ship will be sold and proceeds split 75/20/5 with us holding the largest portion and Potemkin receiving 20% of the proceeds.” “Wait, Fiscus, who receives the last 5% of the profit?” “Well sir, we do not have any knowledgeable ship builders. The 5% will go to the Nestorian Learners for supplying tech-priests to help with construction.” “With the shipyard I think we should be able to build nearly 9 escorts at one time which is just short of the 30 slots around a shipyard, or as many larger ships as would fit in a similar dock. If we decide to produce larger ships we can always just promise Potemkin that we will have 5 slots devoted to production of their ships and we would be willing to produce any size vessel for them at their request. I predict we may even be able to buyout the Potemkin slots in exchange for several cargo holds of shuttles and planetary landers so they can avoid dealings with the Coyote and Frey Consortiums. For the immediate future we can push Potemkin into joint funding the initial costs of this operation because of their current decline in trade from their mines they are just desperate enough to jump at this offer. If they will pay 300 million thrones as a buy in price we can begin building ships immediately upon completion of the station. With the additional capital we need not take out loans or dip into the chapter coffers to pay for the labor and at the end of production Potemkin and ourselves will have made a great deal of money. Should we ever expand our production further we may be able to rival some of the naval ship yards in the sector and our coffers can exceed even the Ecclesiarchy.” Averon stands and walks over to Fiscus to rub the old bald man’s head. “Fiscus, you blessed bastard you! I think this might work! Let us have a drink to celebrate!” Averon signals to one of his servitors which quickly shuffles over holding a bottle of milky white wine.